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THE LITTLE BEAR WHO 
RAN AWAY FROM BRUINTOWN 


















































































THE LITTLE BEAR 
WHO RAN AWAY FROM 
BRUINTOWN 

BY 

FRANK VER BECK 



BOSTON 

SMALL, MAYNARD AND COMPANY 


PUBLISHERS 





t 



Copyright 1923 

By SMALL, MAYNARD AND COMPANY 
(Incorporated) 



PRINTED IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA 


THE MURRAY PRINTING COMPANY 
CAMBRIDGE, MASS. 

BOUND BY THE BOSTON BOOKBINDING COMPANY 
CAMBRIDGE, MASS., U. S. A. 





THE LITTLE BEAR WHO 
RAN AWAY FROM BRUINTOWN 





THE LITTLE BEAR WHO 
RAN AWAY FROM BRUINTOWN 

I 

In a deep green wood, once upon a time there 
lived a Little Bear. The poor little fellow was 
an orphan and lived with a lot of big bears, 
some medium-sized bears and a great many small 
bears. They all dwelt together in a place called 
Bruintown. 

Now this particular Little Bear was not at all 
happy. One reason he was not happy was be¬ 
cause both the medium-sized bears and the other 
little bears teased and abused him. They called 
him “Booby-cry-baby” and he, being an orphan, 
had no one to take his part against his cruel 
tormentors. 

Sometimes the little fellow showed pluck and 

tried to defend himself. He would bite, and 
1 


2 THE LITTLE BEAR WHO RAN AWAY 

kick, and scratch, until the bullies cried for help. 
Then the medium-sized bears would pitch into 
him, and the poor Little Bear hadn’t a chance in 
the world. But what he hated worst of all was 
when some big she-bear—mother of one of the 
cubs—would add to his other troubles by pull¬ 
ing his ears. And the louder he cried the harder 
his ears were pulled, until his courage was all 
gone and his ears were a whole lot too large. 

It wasn’t any wonder that Elmer (Elmer was 
the Little Bear’s name, although he did not like 
it) was so discouraged that one day he threat¬ 
ened to run away from Bruintown. 

“Some d-dark night,” sobbed Elmer, “I-I’ll 
wa-walk oif over the m-mon-mountain and go on 
and on un-until I fi-find the place where m-my 
nice old g-grandma lives.” 

For this threat Elmer got his ears pulled 
again and one of the medium-sized bears beat 
him most unmercifully while the rest of his tor¬ 
mentors laughed and jeered. 


THE LITTLE BEAR WHO RAN AWAY 


3 


That night the Little Bear could not sleep, 
his right fore paw hurt, his left hind paw hurt, 
his nose was swollen and both ears ached. Much 
ear-pulling had so stretched his scalp that he 
could not close his eyes and poor Elmer did not 
sleep a wink. 

So the sad-hearted, much-abused Little Bear 
quietly stole away through the great, dark woods. 
He passed a big gnarled chestnut-tree where 
some raccoons lived. Further on he passed the 
rocky den where Old Brother Fox dwelt with his 
vixen and her fox pups. He nearly tumbled into 
a stream where a family of muskrats were having 
a heated discussion; he was about to enquire the 
way to his grandma’s home but the frightened 
muskrats quickly dived and missed hearing a 
word Elmer said. The Little Bear trudged on 
and on, hoping to meet some one who might be 
able to give him tidings of his old Granny. 

“I suppose I’m lost,” thought he, “but I don’t 
care a rap, and, come to think, I’m really glad 


4 THE LITTLE BEAR WHO RAN AWAY 

of it, for anything that may happen cannot be 
worse than what has already been done to me in 

Bruintown, that beastly -Here Elmer 

nearly said a bad word. 

The thoughts of all he had suffered started 
him crying, so he sat down and had a real good 
old-fashioned cry, until he happened to think 
how lucky he was to be off there alone with no 
big she-bear near by to pull his ears. This 
thought so pleased the Little Bear that he 
wanted to laugh. Laughing was not much in 
his line; still, he managed to do a kind of 
chuckle which developed into a missy-sissy 
schoolgirl giggle. Afterward he cried some 
more, louder even than his first good cry. Elmer 
cried for joy; he cried because he was hungry; 
he cried because he was not a big grizzly bear 
who could walk into Bruintown and whip all the 
she-bears, and thump all the medium-sized 
bears, and roundly spank every last one of the 
little bears who had been so mean to him; last 



THE LITTLE BEAR WHO RAN AWAY 5 

of all, he cried because his name was Elmer. 

Afterward he chuckled and giggled because 
he had determined to change his name. Elmer 
was his Bruintown name and he was thoroughly 
sick of it. So he decided that, hereafter, he 
would call himself “Teddy.” By that time he 
was very sleepy and his eyes that were before so 
dreadfully starey, on account of so much ear¬ 
pulling, were now so swollen by crying and gig¬ 
gling that he could easily close them, so Teddy 
(let’s call him Teddy if it pleases him) went 
to sleep and never dreamed a thing. 
















































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It was nearly daylight when Elmer (or Teddy, 
as he is now called) was awakened by feeling 
one of his ears being gently pulled. He instantly 
jumped to an upright position. There, right in 
front of him, stood Old Brother ’Possum. The 
’Possum himself was so frightened by Teddy’s 
quick jump that he closed his small eyes and 
tumbled over backwards, for all the world like 
he had been struck dead. But El— (beg par¬ 
don) Teddy was not fooled, for he very well knew 
the ways of Old Mr. ’Possum and all his make- 
believe tribe. So the Little Bear bent over the 
prostrate form of the early caller, and, taking his 
limp paw, gave it a hearty shake, saying: 

“How-de-doo, Brother ’Possum!” 

But the Old ’Possum at first never moved. 
By and by he slyly lifted an eyelid ever so little, 

7 


8 


THE LITTLE BEAR WHO RAN AWAY 


then closed it again and lay perfectly still for a 
minute until Teddy said: 

“Oh, wake up, old man! It’s going to be a 
fine day and I’m Jack-whoopin’ glad to see you.” 

“Jack-whoopin’ ” must have been a kind of 
password understood by the Old ’Possum, for he 
quickly jumped up and heartily shook paws with 
Teddy, only he called him Elmer. 

“W’y, how-de-doo Elmer! ’Clare to good¬ 
ness it’s a coon’s age since I done met up wid 
yo’. How d’s yo’ corporosity shegatiate?” 

(We imagine, by Mr. ’Possum’s way of talk¬ 
ing, that he must have been born down south 
near a negro cabin and learned to talk by listen¬ 
ing to the language of colored people.) 

Teddy did not know what answer was ex¬ 
pected of him, so he only smiled good-naturedly. 
Mr. ’Possum next asked: 

6 ‘How come yo’ visitin’ these parts, Elmer? 
Was yo’ got lost, stray’d or stolen, or was yo’ jes’ 
kicked outen Bruintown?” 


THE LITTLE BEAR WHO RAN AWAY 


9 


The Little Bear did not half like the way Mr. 
’Possum spoke and, as he felt his hair and anger 
rising at the same time, he told Mr. ’Possum it 
was none of his business how he happened to 
leave Bruintown, “and besides,” said he, “I’d 
have you know that my name is now Teddy and 
not Elmer any more. I threw my Elmer name 
away last night after I left Bruintown, because I 
don’t like it.” 

“ ’Scuse me, Mr. Teddy,” apologized the 
’Possum. “It’s ’mos’ daylight now an’ de time 
all good ’possums hunt dar nest and take dar 
rest.” He bowed politely as he said: “good day, 
sah! I mus’ be jebsin’ along.” 

“Please hold on a minute, do sit down and 
listen,” urged the Little Bear. “I’m so sorry 
that my spoiled temper caused me to hurt your 
feelings. You see, the Bruintown bears hec¬ 
tored and pestered me, and slapped and kicked 
me; they teased and bit me and starved me until 
I’m now cross as a bear. 


10 THE LITTLE BEAR WHO RAN AWAY 


“Do you know, Brother ’Possum, the mean 
old she-bears pulled my ears until they are 
nearly as big as—well, just look at them 
yourself.” 

Mr. ’Possum slowly opened his eyes and 
looked but did not laugh. 

“The big he-bears,” continued Teddy, “used 
to kick me around like a football. The medium¬ 
sized bears sat on me and tumbled me about and 
played log-rolling with me until I was ’most 
dead. Then they’d carry me down to the creek 
and duck me until I was nearly drowned. After¬ 
wards they’d stand me on my head until I was 
drained out. Then, I’m blest if they wouldn’t 
pitch on me and do it all over again. Oh, I’m so 
fighting, squealing mad,” raged Teddy, “when 
I think of it all, that I’d like to eat a lot, a big lot, 
and grow up to be as big as a big Ji-as-ti-cu-tus, 
with muscles as hard as cocoanuts, and then go 
back to Bruintown and—” 

Just then Old Mr. ’Possum missed a cog in his 


THE LITTLE BEAR WHO RAN AWAY 11 

steady snore, which caused the Little Bear to 
turn and look at him. The peaceful sight caused 
Teddy to forget his bygone troubles, so he bent 
over close and cried real loud into Old Brother 
’Possum’s left ear: 

66 Jack-whoopin’!! Chickens! Cut-cut-ca-dad- 
cut! Get your hair cut!” 

The Old ’Possum instantly waked up. 





















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“Did yo’ expostulate somepin’?” said Old 
Brother ’Possum, who was now wide-awake and 
staring at Teddy. 

“Oh, never mind, ’twas of no consequence,” 
said the Little Bear. “I may have been thinking 
out loud, as I do sometimes, of my past life in 
Bruintown. I wish to goodness I could forget 
all about it. Please, Mr. ’Possum, won’t you 
help me try to forget about—well, all about 
those stirring times?” 

“Yess’r! I will with all m’ might, ’fi c’n keep 
awake when yo’ begin prevar’catin’ an’ relatin’ 
’bout ’em,” answered the obliging ’Possum. 

“I don’t quite understand all your last re¬ 
mark,” complained Teddy. “Still, let it pass, I 
know you meant all right. By the way, ’Pos, 
I’m hungry as a wolf.” 

“And / do be hungry as a bear,” said the 

13 


14 THE LITTLE BEAR WHO RAN AWAY 


’Possum, “my po’ in’ards hab misery and done 
collapse fo’ de la’k o’ nour’shment.” 

So, guided by hunger, both the Little Bear 
and Mr. ’Possum went in search of an early 
breakfast. The wise Provider for all never in¬ 
tended these wild creatures to starve. They 
were free to make the great deep woods their 
home and go where hunger or pleasure led them. 
The Old ’Possum had first-rate luck catching 
beetles in a dry rotten log. He also found some 
choice white grubs, while Teddy was equally 
fortunate in finding some ripe strawberries. 
Next he discovered a sarvas (June berry) bush 
and called to Brother ’Possum, who was busy 
catching a few snapping bugs. The Old ’Possum 
came running and joined Teddy in the sarvas 
feast. They both ate and ate and thought and 
ate, and just ate and did not think a thought 
until they could hold no more. 

In a near-by large chestnut-tree Mr. ’Possum 
spied an inviting-looking knothole. 


THE LITTLE BEAR WHO RAN AWAY 15 

“Oh! I say, El—Teddy, I mean, le’s res’ f’om 
’spons’bility in dat big ches’nut.” So saying, he 
lazily climbed the tree. 

“Where are you going?” called the Little 
Bear. 

“To sleep,” answered the ’Possum as he 
disappeared high up in a knothole. The Bear 
was sorry that he could not go with his friend 
into the higher place. And he had to be content 
to take his rest in the hollow trunk of the same 
tree, only he entered at the ground opening. As 
he made himself comfortable below, he called 
aloft: 

“Good night this morning until tonight, 
Brother ’Possum.” 

“Night,” sleepily came the answer. 

Teddy had just gotten nicely started in a first- 
rate dream in which he himself was transformed 
into a giant Ji-as-ti-cu-tus (no, we do not recog¬ 
nize that animal, Teddy dreamed it), heading 
straight for Bruin town. As he approached, his 


16 THE LITTLE BEAR WHO RAN AWAY 


old tormentor bears gave a scream of terror. 
This scream awakened Teddy, but it really came 
from Old Mr. ’Possum, who had in his sleep 
unfortunately tumbled off his insecure bed right 
spang into a colony of wild bees who dwelt four 
feet below him. 

“Ouch! Help! Help! Jawbone Sampson! 
Burglars! Bargain sales! Buzz-saws!” yelled 
the distracted ’Possum as he scrambled out and 
down the tree to the ground. He was being fol¬ 
lowed by about two baker’s dozens of the aveng¬ 
ing bees. 

Teddy bounded out and courageously joined 
Brother ’Possum in his battle against the bees, 
but it was a victorious fight for the bees, for they 
stung the Old ’Possum’s sharp nose seven times 
and he also got stung on each paw. Poor Teddy 
got his share too. His casualties were four stings 
on his tender nose and a sting on each paw. Old 
Brother ’Possum tumbled over and tried his 
well-known trick of playing dead, but this didn’t 


THE LITTLE BEAR WHO RAN AWAY 17 

work, for he got two extra stings on his smooth 
tail which caused him to quickly revive and fol¬ 
low the Little Bear, who had already fled through 
the rhododendron bushes. 

They ran down a steep bank to a brook and 
dived into a deep place and swam to the mud 
shore lower down. The bees had by that time 
left them. Both had swollen noses and the ’Pos¬ 
sum had two sizable lumps on his tail. He was 
softly crying and the Little Bear was having a 
good loud cry. After his cry had slowed down 
enough for him to speak, he asked: 

“Do you always go to sleep in that kind of a 
place, Mr. ’Pos?” 

The ’Possum pretended not to hear but rathe* 
thickly said: 

“ ’F yo’ dry up and shet yo’ mouth, Elmer, 
I’ll use m’ Aunt Mary’s cure fo’ bee bite.” 

He first daubed his own nose with soft mud 
and then built two mud balls around the lumps 
on his tail. Afterwards he daubed Teddy’s nose 


18 THE LITTLE BEAR WHO RAN AWAY 

until it looked like an unbaked brick and he was 
not gentle about it either. He also gave the bear 
a lump of mud to hold to ease his paws, and held 
another in his own paws. 

Then they both sat down and neither said a 
word for a long time. 



















IV 


After the mud on Teddy’s and Mr. ’Pos¬ 
sum’s noses had dried so that it would crack off, 
and the bee-stings were pretty well cured, and 
the Little Bear had washed his face, he happened 
to think that he had entirely forgotten the fact 
that he had really started out to visit his Grand¬ 
ma. It had been Teddy’s intention, when he 
first met the ’Possum, to enquire if he knew 
where the Old Lady Bear lived. But, in the 
excitement of all that happened, the subject had 
completely slipped his mind. 

“By the way, Brother ’Possum,” said the 
Little Bear, “do you, by any chance, happen to 
know where my old Grandma lives?” 

“Aw, stop yo’ kiddin’, El— I mean Teddy,” 
said the ’Possum, “I don’ ever done know yo’ 
had a Grannysnapper.” 


19 


20 THE LITTLE BEAR WHO RAN AWAY 


“Yes, indeed, I have,” corrected Teddy, “a 
real nice Old Bear Granny, and I’m going to 
find her. Won’t you please help me, Mr. ’Pos¬ 
sum?” 

“Now, jes’ hoi’ yo’ hoss’s, Mista Li’l Bear; 
’scuse me, I don’t cal’late to ambulate into de 
hungry jaws o’ any o’ yo’ kinfolks, not ’fi knows 
m’ min’,” said the cautious ’Possum. 

“Hold your own horses! Not so fast, Mr. 
’Possum. My Grandma would never hurt a pal 
of mine; besides, she’d be glad to see you. Now, 
please tell me, do you know where she lives?” 

“I s’pos’ mo’n likely I does know,” said the 
’Possum, “fo’ I gen’rly c’n lokate whar ev’y las’ 
one o’ de tribe o’ bears lib what make dar habi¬ 
tation in dese parts o’ dis hem’sp’ere. Mayhap 
yo’d condescend to provide a perscription (de¬ 
scription) o’ yo’ Grannysnapper. Proceed, 
Mista Bear.” 

“Well,” said Teddy, “my dear old Grandma 
is a fine big good-natured bear as ever lived. She 


THE LITTLE BEAR WHO RAN AWAY 21 


was nineteen years old on the twenty-third of 
last November, and she does not look more than 
half her age. She was, on her mother’s side, a 
Sinith-Murphy. All the Smith-Murphy bears 
were very proud and well-behaved. My Grandma 
was the pet of the fam— Are you listening, 
Brother ’Possum?” 

“Um-huh,” grunted the ’Possum, “proceed 
wid de rat-kill’n’.” 

“Grandma’s name,” continued the Little 
Bear, “is Lucy or Lucinda Milarky. She got her 
Milarky name from a wild harum-scarum bear 
by the name of Dan Milarky (he was my grand¬ 
dad), who courted her when she was only four 
years old. She eloped with the rascal much 
against the Smith-Mur— Look at me, ’Possum! 
Are you asleep?” 

“Me? Yo’ speakin’ to me, Elmer?” sleepily 
answered the Old ’Possum. “No, indeed, I’s 
wide-awake. M’ min’s recordin’ all de wicked¬ 
ness o’ dem lo’ down tribe yo’s complainin’ 


22 THE LITTLE BEAR WHO RAN AWAY 

’bout. Yo’ sho does hab m’ symp’thy, Mista 
Teddy.” 

Mr. ’Possum’s sleepy rumbling was too much 
for the Little Bear’s pride and he felt his hasty 
temper rising so fast that he knew he would 
surely do something to the ’Possum if he did 
not check himself. So he walked off and sat 
down and slowly counted eleven in a whisper, 
but he found his temper was not improving 
much, so he counted six more out loud. This 
helped some and he felt, after a few minutes, 
that he could trust himself to speak calmly to 
Brother ’Possum. 

As he approached his unworthy friend he 
heard steady see-saw snores and knew Mr. ’Pos¬ 
sum’s spirit was safe somewhere in the back- 
woods of Dreamland. So Teddy rested awhile 
until he felt the grip of hunger. The more he 
thought about that bee-tree, the hungrier he 
grew. Finally, he decided to wake the Old ’Pos¬ 
sum. This he did by splashing water on him. 


THE LITTLE BEAR WHO RAN AWAY 23 

Brother ’Possum shook himself and rubbed his 
sleepy eyes and asked Teddy if there was any¬ 
thing he could do for him. 

“Yes, come along,” urged the Little Bear, 
“and let’s go back to that bee-tree and get some 
of the good honey.” 

“A Jack-whoopin’ noble tho’t,” ejaculated 
the ’Possum, “but first we’ll mud-daub our 
smellers an’ git de start o’ de tarnation bees.” 

This they wisely did and carried some mud- 
balls besides, knowing they would be useful. 

Brother ’Possum climbed up inside the tree 
and soon loosened several well-filled honey¬ 
combs and dropped them down for Teddy to 
catch. When a goodly quantity had been pro¬ 
cured, they carried it off a short distance and 
then both greedily gorged themselves. But the 
bees were not going to allow their honey to be 
taken without a protest and some of them fol¬ 
lowed. Then more and more bees came until the 
bee-robbers again had to fight. They put up a 


24 THE LITTLE BEAR WHO RAN AWAY 

poor fight, and, being too full to run and much 
smeared ^vith honey besides, they both lay down 
and rolled in the dry leaves. Of course, the 
leaves stuck fast. They kept on rolling in the 
leaves until they were a sight to behold, and you 
could hardly tell which was the ’Possum and 
which was the Little Bear. 































































































































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“It was all your fault,” said Teddy, after the 
bees had given up their pursuit. “You might 
have known that mud-daubin’ could not save us 
from the mad bees. I’m a sight, just look at me, 
will you?” 

“Yes, I sees yo’ or, at leas’ somepin’ what 
looks like a live trash-pile,” answered the ’Pos¬ 
sum. “Now, Mista Bear, ’f yo’ sho yo’ lookin’ 
dis way—fo’ I can’t tell by yo’ looks—so’s yo’ 
can hear de remarks dat’s a-comin’ outen m’ 
min’. 

“Yo’ yo’self am to blame,” declared the Old 
’Possum, “ ’f yo’ hadn’t been so tarnation good- 
fo’-nothin’ lazy yo’d a carried de honey fur nuf 
away outen sight an’ hearin’ o’ dem stingy bees, 

’stead o’ wastin’ it; me an’ yo’ would now be 
25 


26 THE LITTLE BEAR WHO RAN AWAY 

peaceful’ enjoyin’ de feas’ ’stead o’ standin’ here 
like twin hay-cocks pickin’ a fuss.” 

Mr. ’Possum sat down and wheezed very hard 
after so freely speaking his mind. 

The Little Bear did not altogether look at the 
incident in the same light as did the ’Possum. 
Still, he hated a fuss; he had had so many of 
them in Bruintown, so he cautiously remarked: 

“I’m afraid, Brother ’Possum, that if I go to 
see my old Granny looking like I do now she’ll 
hardly know me.” 

“I s’posen yo’ old Grannysnapper take yo’ fo’ 
a bugbear, Mista Teddy!” 

“Well, anyhow, Brother ’Pos, can’t you do 
something to help me get rid of this disagreeable 
disguise?” pleaded the Little Bear. 

“Le’me think,” said Old Mr. ’Possum, “ ’f I 
pic’ yo’ leaves off, da’ll Stic’ fas’ to m’ own sticky 
paws.” 

“Please do it,” pleaded Teddy. 

“All right, El— Teddy, I mean, ’f yo’ ’gree to 


THE LITTLE BEAR WHO RAN AWAY 27 

pic’ my leaves off’n me after I done pic’ yo\” 
But the Little Bear answered “No” by vigor¬ 
ously shaking his leafy head. 

“I ’clare to goodness, Mista B’ar, I jes’ now 
think how we kin git shed o’ dese bias’d leaves. 
I got a fren’, a owl, name o’ Miss Hoo’s Hoo-o-o. 
She make a specialty o’ pickin’ chickens. Come 
’long, le’s fin’ ’er an’ gib ’er de job o’ Fillydefy 
dry-pickin’ us.” 

It was almost dark by the time Teddy and 
Brother ’Possum reached the old dead tree on the 
mountain side where Miss Hoo’s Hoo-o-o lived. 
The Owl was still fast asleep. First, the ’Possum 
made a noise like an owl, but the sleepy old bird 
never moved. Then he said: 

“Cut! cut! Ca-dad-cut! Get yo’ hair cut!” 
Instantly the Old Owl awoke and flew down 
to where the ’Possum and Bear stood waiting. 
But she must have thought they were two ghosts 
or that it had been a bad dream that had dis¬ 
turbed her rest, for she hurriedly flew to a dis- 


28 THE LITTLE BEAR WHO RAN AWAY 

tant tree and called back “Hoo’s hooo ho-o-o?” 

But neither of them thought it worth while to 
answer. 

“ ’Clare to goodness,” said Mr. ’Possum, “I’s 
s’prised an’ shocked at de bad manners o’ some 
o’ m’ fren’s. Anyhow,” he continued, “I has 
some other fren’s what am obligated to me fo’ 
pas’ favors—fac’ is—but don’ yo’ tell anybody 
—dey still owe me fo’ two doz’n las’ year’s 
roas’nears (green corn). I knows very well da 
not fail me, leas’wise da neber hab gi’me de 
slip when I suffer in tribulation. De name o’ 
dese folks am Mr. an’ Mrs. Molly an’ Mike 
Muskrat an’ fam’ly. Now, washin’ do be a 
specialty wid dem folks. So come ’long, Elmer 
(the ’Possum forgot Teddy again), le’s gi’m 
de job o’ scourin’ dis sticky mess offen us.” 

By that time the poor Little Bear was too 
tired and discouraged to offer any objection. So 
off they both went in search of the Muskrat fam¬ 
ily. As they stumbled along through the dark 


THE LITTLE BEAR WHO RAN AWAY 29 


shadows of the moonlit woods, their leaves 
rustled like the gathering of a wind-storm. 

When they arrived the Muskrats were all 
busy. Molly Muskrat and her children were 
cleaning house and carrying out trash and a lot 
of last year’s old corncobs. Mike Muskrat was 
laboriously bringing in a big armful of green 
clover and new corn sprouts, but when they saw 
our two sad heroes approaching, they all quickly 
dived into the pool and swam under water to 
their den opening beneath the surface and dis¬ 
appeared. 

Teddy and Old Brother ’Possum lay that 
night on the bank by the pool and slept just as 
they were. 






VI 

Teddy and Mr. ’Possum were awakened at 
early dawn by that mysterious gentle wind that 
always precedes the rising sun and heralds the 
coming day. Both lay still for some minutes 
listening. By and by they were startled by the 
noise of a cracking dead twig. Pretty soon they 
saw the gray form of Old Mr. ’Coon come 
ambling along the other side of the pool. He 
was intent on catching a few crawfish before lay¬ 
ing up for the day after his night wanderings. 
He turned over some stones and appeared to 
have pretty good luck until he came opposite 
where Teddy and Brother ’Possum sat. When 
he happened to catch sight of them he was 
struck dumb for a brief spell. Then he gave a 
cry which sounded like this: 

“Ou-yiz-wor-r-r-r-z-z-z!!’’ and dropping his 
crawfish he started to run. 


31 


32 THE LITTLE BEAR WHO RAN AWAY 


6 4 Jack-whoopin’! Halt! Tadpoles, young 
ducks, quack! quack!” loudly screamed the 
’Possum. 

This cry brought the ’Coon to a standstill. 

64 Why yo’ makin’ tracks leadin’ away so fas’, 
Brother ’Coon? Please come back an’ hear some 
remarks o’ me an’ m’ fren’ who am in tribula¬ 
tion.” 

44 Yes, please do come and help us to get free 
from this hateful sticky mess, that’s a good 
’Coon,” pleaded the Little Bear. 

The ’Coon was about to take to his heels again 
when he heard the leaf-covered Bear speak, but 
he stopped when Mr. ’Possum said: 

44 Don’ yo’ know yo’ ol’ Jack-whoopin’ pal? 
Yo’ always a good han’ at huskin’ corn. Come 
’long an’ husk us outen dese dod-blas’d leaves.” 

44 Wal, by gum! Katydids and crickets! I’m 
t-totally double-jiggered,” said the Old ’Coon, 
44 if ’tain’t 01’ Jo ’Pos and Little Elmer lookin’ 
like two young bales o’ hay.” 


THE LITTLE BEAR WHO RAN AWAY 33 

So much noise outside the Muskrat’s home 
roused their curiosity and Old Mike cautiously 
slid down from their underground cavern into 
the tunnel leading to the below-water door and 
soon stuck his round head above the surface of 
the pool. He first saw Mr. ’Coon, which gave 
him courage to come all the way out of the water. 
He was about to say something when he spied 
the two leafy objects he had seen the night be¬ 
fore. The Old Muskrat lost no time in dodging 
behind the ’Coon. 

66 ’Lo, Mike!” called Brother ’Possum, “ ’f 
yo’ hasn’t got no spite ’gin yo’ ol’ fren’, why 
don’ yo’ howdy me?” 

But the Muskrat never moved or said a word 
until his old friend spoke again. 

66 ’Clare to goodness, Mike, yo’ sho done los’ 
yo’ min’, er else yo’ manners am gone a-fishin’.” 

At length the sound of Mr. ’Possum’s familiar 
voice caused the Muskrat to recognize his old 
friend, for Mike came forward with a grin and 


34 THE LITTLE BEAR WHO RAN AWAY 


rather sheepishly, or muskratily, shook paws 
with the ’Possum, who then introduced him to 
Teddy. 

The Muskrat bowed politely enough but he 
was either too stupid or too mystified to speak. 
The ’Coon also acted as though the cat had his 
tongue, for he had nothing more to say. 

Then Brother ’Possum explained at great 
length to his astonished friends all about the 
unfortunate mishap and offered both himself 
and Teddy as clinching evidence. 

“Now, m’ kin’ fren’s,” continued the ’Possum 
after clearing his throat, “we both come to yo’ 
in dis sor’ful tribulation an’ spec’ yo’-all am 
goin’ to pitch in an’ he’p us outen dis sticky 
mess.” 

“Yes, oh please do help us,” interrupted the 
Little Bear, “you’ve no idea how ugly we feel.” 

“We very well knows,” again spoke the ’Pos¬ 
sum, “dat yo’, Brother ’Coon, done make washin’ 
an’ cleanin’ yo’ business an’—why, ev’ry one 


THE LITTLE BEAR WHO RAN AWAY 35 

knows de Muskrats done scrub an’ clean to beat 
de ban’. Now Mike,” said he, nodding to the 
Muskrat, “go home an’ tell yo’ ol’ missus an’ de 
chilluns to hurry up an’ jine yo’ an’ Mista ’Coon 
in de ceremony o’ cleanin’ an’ scrapin’ an’ 
scourin’ yo’ fren’s what need it mighty bad.” 

Old Mike hurriedly went off to do as he was 
bid, and Mr. ’Coon undressed and got ready for 
the business at hand. 

“I knows,” said the ’Possum, when the Musk¬ 
rat family had assembled and all was ready, “dis 
is a dis’greeable job, but it am goin’ to be wusser 
—much wusser fo’ me an’ El— Teddy, an’ ’fi 
carry on an’ scol’ an’ fight, as I’s likely to do, 
never min’, but keep right on wid de cleanin’. 
After I done git washed, mebbe I pitch in an’ 
he’p clean up Teddy.” 

When the Little Bear heard all this, he could 
hardly help wishing that he was back in Bruin- 
town, and he did wish that he was safe in his 
old Granny’s arms. 

















V 

. 


























































































































VII 


When the “ceremony,” as the Old ’Possum 
called it, was about to begin, of removing the 
sticky mess of honey and leaves from the Little 
Bear and Mr. ’Possum, the poor old boy’s heart 
failed him and he slumped down and fainted 
dead away. But he did not fool either the Musk¬ 
rat family, who were all eager to begin and enjoy 
the fun, nor did it mislead Mr. ’Coon who 
showed a sly twinkle in his eye. 

So they carried the apparently lifeless limp 
bundle of ’Possum to the edge of the pool and 
tossed him in. He sank like a stone, but the Old 
’Coon and all the Muskrat family jumped in 
after him. Mike and Molly Muskrat soon 
brought the ’Possum to the surface. The cold 
plunge had revived him and he was spitting 

furiously and gasping for breath. As soon as 
37 


38 THE LITTLE BEAR WHO RAN AWAY 


the half strangled ’Possum was able to speak, 
he begged to be let go. 

“Le’me be,” he yelled, “I rudder wear dese 
leaves de res’ o’ m’ life dan perish mis’bly like a 
drown’ rat! Le’go! I tells yo’! I got somepin’ 
to live fo’ now, jes’ to get even wid yo’ cowards 
an’ bullies. So he’p me Jon—” 

But his cry for Old Jonah’s help was lost, for 
two of the junior Muskrats pulled him under by 
the tail and began sousing him up and down like 
a churn-dasher, while Mr. ’Coon thoughtfully 
held the ’Possum’s mouth shut with both paws 
to keep him from swallowing too much water, 
also to shut off his threats and complaints. 

By that time poor Teddy was so frightened 
at seeing the ’Possum’s rough treatment that he 
began screaming at the top of his voice and 
started to run away. 

Old Mr. ’Coon fortunately saw this attempted 
escape, so he left the Muskrat family to finish 
the job for Brother ’Possum and soon overhauled 


THE LITTLE BEAR WHO RAN AWAY 39 


the Little Bear in his mad dash for freedom. 

Poor Teddy begged piteously to be excused 
from the sousing he knew was awaiting him, 
but the merciless ’Coon only held fast and slowly 
marched him back. He told the Little Bear a 
good scrubbing would really be the making of 
him, and that that was a part of the program he 
himself had agreed to. “Besides,” said the 
’Coon, “it is a lot of fun and by Hicky! I 
wouldn’t miss the circus myself for anything.” 

They found on their return that the Muskrat 
family were succeeding beautifully. Although 
Brother ’Possum had fainted again, Old Mike 
was kindly holding his head above the water, 
while Molly and the youngsters were industri¬ 
ously washing the very last of the leaves and all 
the honey from his furry hide. Then they gently 
carried the limp form of the make-believe dead 
’Possum and laid him on the grass to dry. All 
stood around with their arms akimbo, while the 
poor little leaf-bedecked Bear sat for a while, 


40 THE LITTLE BEAR WHO RAN AWAY 

sobbing beside the peaceful but clean ’Possum. 

Teddy broke into a loud wail when they 
grabbed and marched him towards the pool. He 
gave an extra loud cry as they tossed him in, 
while all the washers gave a shout of glee as 
they dived in after him. 

This noise revived Mr. ’Possum marvelously, 
for he jumped up and laughed and cheered with 
all his might. 

“Go it Brother ’Coon! Go it Mike Muskrat! 
Scrub ’im hard Miss Molly! Neber min’ Elmer’s 
complain’s (in the excitement he got the Little 
Bear’s name wrong again), clean ’im up clean 
so’s he Grannysnapper ’ll know ’im when de ol’ 
gal see ’im a-comin’.” Encouraged by Mr. ’Pos¬ 
sum’s enthusiasm, the washers were doing the 
job thoroughly. 

Teddy very wisely soon stopped fighting. In 
fact he was rather pleased at the result as he 
stood in the edge of the pool and had a last 
rinse-down. 


THE LITTLE BEAR WHO RAN AWAY 41 


When they were all assembled again on the 
bank and the Little Bear had shaken himself 
like a wet dog, Old Brother ’Possum formally 
thanked Mike and Molly Muskrat and compli¬ 
mented the junior members of their family. He 
heartily shook paws with Mr. ’Coon and was 
preparing a set speech of gratitude in his mind 
for all collectively when he happened to glance 
over his shoulder. 

What he saw caused him to apparently drop 
dead again. Old Mr. ’Coon and the Muskrat 
family were also terror-stricken, for they one 
and all instantly dived into the pool. But Teddy 
stood perfectly still as a full-grown bear 
approached. 























































' 




i 






































































VIII 


It was Old Bear Peter, the Constable of 
Bruintown, who had come in search of the stray 
Little Bear. 

Poor Teddy’s heart sank when Old Peter 
walked up and stood before him. Teddy met the 
stern gaze of the accusing eye fixed upon him 
with an appealing look. Then he said: 

“Go ahead, Mr. Constable, and say it. I’m 
waiting to hear you say—as you always do— 
that you are very sorry, but you must do your 
duty and take me back to Bruintown.” 

“Yes,” said the old custodian of the law good- 
naturedly, “that’s about what I was going to 
remark. I might also ask have you got anything 
to say for yourself, Elmer?” 

“Not very much,” answered the Little Bear, 
“for you really must know why I ran away from 

43 


44 THE LITTLE BEAR WHO RAN AWAY 

Bruintown. And if you take me back,” he 
threatened, ‘Til run away again the very first 
chance I get and go to live with my dear Old 
Grandma, that is, if I can find her. There’s one 
more thing, Mr. Constable, I have to say for 
myself, which is, that my name is now Teddy. 
When I ran away I left my Elmer name behind 
because I did not like it any more.” 

“Well,” said Old Peter, “I can’t say that I 
blame you so very much for clearin’ out of Bruin¬ 
town. Still, as you know, I must take you back 
there, but not right away, for I want to take my 
time and look around these parts and enjoy my¬ 
self before we do go back. By the way,” he con¬ 
tinued, “who killed that ’Possum?” He winked 
at Teddy as he said this, and picked Brother 
’Possum up by the tail. 

“I fear you must have frightened him to 
death,” said the Little Bear. 

“Well, anyhow,” said Old Peter, “I’m not 
very hungry at present, but let’s take this nice 


THE LITTLE BEAR WHO RAN AWAY 45 

fat ’Possum with us and look around a bit.” So 
off they started, Old Constable Peter leading 
Teddy on one side, and carrying poor Mr. ’Pos¬ 
sum by the tail upside down on the other.* 

But they had not gone very far until the ’Pos¬ 
sum grew tired of “playing ’possum” and said, 
“ ’Scuse me, Mista Bear, but I’se had ’bout all 
de tail-stretchin’ I cares fo’. Please le’go my 
tail!” 

Mr. Bear instantly dropped him and pre¬ 
tended great surprise at finding the ’Possum was 
still alive. He then explained to the embarrassed 
’Possum that he had thought some of eating him 
for dinner. “But now,” said Old Peter, “that 
you are alive I’m going to let you decide whether 
you will be my dinner or be my servant.” 

“Your servant!! at yo’ servace, sir,” cried 

* Author’s note .—All hunters know, and all colored 
people know, but not quite all readers know, that Brother 
’Possum has often been carried a long distance like Old 
Peter was carrying him without showing the least sign of 
life until he was put down, then he would jump up and 
quickly make good his escape. 


46 THE LITTLE BEAR WHO RAN AWAY 

Brother ’Possum, almost before the words were 
out of the Bear’s mouth. You see, he was afraid 
Mr. Bear might change his mind. He then 
dropped to his knees and thanked his new master 
for kindly saving his life. 

This touching ceremony was too much for 
Teddy, so he turned his face the other way. The 
’Possum thought the Little Bear was softly cry¬ 
ing, but the Constable knew better. He knew he 
was only laughing. 

Old Peter then explained to Brother ’Possum 
what services would be expected of him, which 
would be chiefly the business of hustling around 
and finding provisions for all three, and that 
Teddy would help him. “I, too,” said he, al¬ 
though he was notoriously lazy, “will occasion¬ 
ally lend a helping hand or paw.” 

“Now I trust,” sternly cautioned Old Peter, 
“that you will not allow yourself to grow slack 
in your duties, for I solemnly warn you, if you 
do, you will no longer be my servant, but will 


THE LITTLE BEAR WHO RAN AWAY 47 


be my-” Just then a noise interrupted him, 

and Mr. ’Possum was glad of it, for he did not 
care to hear any more. 

They all listened. 

“It sounds to me,” said the Little Bear, “as 
though there might be something going on back 
at the pool where we came from.” 

“Well, Elm— Teddy, I should say, you and 
’Pos may run back and find out what it is, while 
I rest here and have a smoke.” 

Teddy and the ’Possum hurried off and were 
well out of sight when the Old ’Possum said: 

“Do yo’ s’pose, Elmer, yo’ gwine to fin’ yo’ 
ol’ Grannysnapper in swimmin’?” 

But Teddy did not answer for he knew the 
question had only been asked to spite him. 
Another reason he did not answer was because 
the ’Possum had called him “Elmer.” 






























































































m 










































IX 


Teddy and Old Brother ’Possum very quietly 
made their way through the thick undergrowth 
in the deep woods, and, as they drew near the 
pool, loud shouts of laughter and much splash¬ 
ing of water could be heard. 

Pretty soon they were able to see from behind 
the protection of leaf screen, four small boys, 
who were in swimming. Not far from where the 
Little Bear and ’Possum stood lay four piles of 
scattered clothes which had been hastily shed by 
the small lads in the water. 

As our heroes looked at those scattered gar¬ 
ments, the same thought seemed to occur to 
both “peeping Toms” at the same instant. 

So without saying a word each began sorting 
and trying on what he thought suited him best. 
Very quietly they dressed without interrupting 
the sport at the pool. 


49 


50 THE LITTLE BEAR WHO RAN AWAY 


“De li’l chil’n am enj’yin’ darselves a lot 
more’n we did dis mawnin, eh, Teddy?” whis¬ 
pered the ’Possum; then as an after-thought, he 
added, “I’ll bet a sweet ’tater ’gin a persimmon 
dat two o’ dem li’l fellers gwine to wear da’ Sun¬ 
day togs termorrer.” 

After the Little Bear and the ’Possum were 
all dressed, they were both so pleased and 
anxious to see just how they looked that they 
cut across and came upon another pool around 
the bend in the stream below. There they sur¬ 
prised the same Mike and Molly Muskrat family 
who had abandoned the other pool on account of 
the noisy swimmers. But when they saw our 
dressed-up heroes, they all quickly dived and 
sought safety in another under-bank cavern, be¬ 
cause they thought two of the small boys had 
dressed and were following them. 

After the disturbed waters had become quiet 
again, both Teddy and Brother ’Possum climbed 
out on a projecting log over the pool. There 


THE LITTLE BEAR WHO RAN AWAY 51 


they gazed long and admiringly at their reflected 
images in the glassy water. 

Teddy held his head first on one side then on 
the other. He removed his hat and bowed and 
smiled at himself. Meanwhile, Old Brother ’Pos¬ 
sum was having a grand time. He pulled his 
cap well down over his sharp eyes and tried to 
look saucy. Then he placed it carelessly over 
his right ear, then over the left ear. Afterwards 
he assumed his well-known play-dead-’possum 
look and peeped at his reflection with one half¬ 
open eye. This seemed so funny that he laughed 
at himself. Then he laughed at himself laugh¬ 
ing at himself. This tickled the little fellow half 
to death; he laughed until he was weak, and 
bent so far back that he lost his balance and 
tumbled into the deep water. 

“Oum!! OOOOOOOOO!” said he, as 
he sank. (Those scattered O’s are only bubbles 
that came up where his drowned laugh went 
down.) 


52 THE LITTLE BEAR WHO RAN AWAY 

But Brother ’Possum soon came up again and 
Teddy, with great presence of mind, reached 
down from his log perch and caught him by the 
collar of his jacket and hauled the sober, soaked 
’Possum back to safety on the log. 

This act of heroism so pleased the half- 
drowned ’Possum, that he was sorry he had so 
often called the Little Bear, “Elmer,” and so 
tauntingly alluded to his Grandma as “Granny- 
snapper.” 

Old Mr. 'Possum quickly undressed and 
hung his clothes on a hickory limb to dry. 
No! Teddy did not laugh, but he felt so much 
like doing so that he could not trust himself to 
speak. 

“Le’s ketch a nice mess o’ mussels an’ fresh 
water clams,” said the ’Possum, “whilse de gar¬ 
ments am a-dryin’ an’ carry ’em back to de new 
master.” 

The Little Bear readily agreed and pitched in 
to help. By the time they had as many as they 


THE LITTLE BEAR WHO RAN AWAY 53 


thought they could carry, Brother ’Possum’s 
clothes were dry again, so he lost no time in get¬ 
ting back into them. 

“Now den,” said he, “le’s cram, jam an’ stuff 
all de pockets chuck full o’ dese clams an’ mus¬ 
sels an’ s’prise de President-King-Constable- 
Bear.” 

They did surprise the Old Bear, who at first 
pretended he did not know them. But when 
they began emptying their bulging pockets, he 
dropped his pretense and a broad grin over¬ 
spread his jolly face. 

The lazy old Bruintown Constable Bear 
thanked them both and warmly complimented 
Teddy on his improved appearance. He also 
praised his faithful servant, the ’Possum, on the 
fit of his new uniform. 
























Y^yo’se& Ik -not loiuck to look 

But iAittfhly VM chuefefuft 






X 


Old Bear Peter, the Constable of Bruin- 
town, was quite content with the way Teddy and 
his faithful servant, the ’Possum, waited on him. 
They seemed to know just what to do to keep the 
old fellow comfortable and happy. 

True, they both worked hard at hunting about 
and carrying things in to eat. The Old Bear had 
selected a very comfortable cave for their home. 
Peter had a prodigious appetite. Teddy wasn’t 
far behind and the ’Possum—well, he ate like a 
cook often does, and nibbled a lot besides, and 
nearly always complained of not being hungry. 

There was generally such an abundance that 
the Old Bear hardly ever threatened to eat his 
servant, the ’Possum. Once when Peter did 
threaten to eat him, poor Brother ’Possum 
fainted dead away in his tracks. But the silly 

55 


56 THE LITTLE BEAR WHO RAN AWAY 

Bear was only fooling and told the poor ’Possum 
so as soon as he came to again. 

The ’Possum was really a wonderful provider; 
he was never at a loss to know where to go after 
supplies. 

“I often wonder,” said Teddy one day, “how 
under the sun you come to know so much,” and 
came very near saying, “when you look so 
stupid,” but he checked himself just in time. 

“Le’s res’ a minute an’ hoi’ converse” (talk), 
said Brother ’Possum, as he put down an armful 
of early sweet apples and a nice strip of smoked 
bacon. 

“Yo’ see,” he began, “I’s really not much to 
look at, but I wants to tell yo’ Fs crammed full 
o’ awful good learnin’. I spec’, Mista Teddy, 
dat I knows more’n what de smart’st one o’ m’ 
neighbors do, an’ I oft’n ca’c’late more’n de 
whole passel hunched togeder.” 

The Little Bear nodded encouragingly, which 
induced the boasting ’Possum to keep on talking. 


THE LITTLE BEAR WHO RAN AWAY 57 


“How come I knows so much, yo’ inquisitate 
(asked) while ago? Well sah! I al’ys listen to 
de naborhood gossip. But I neber tells tales 
m’self. “Now dere’s 01’ Grinnie, de ’Coon, ’f’e 
strike luck an’ fin’ a chicken roos’, a hen’s nes’, 
a patch o’ green corn or anything fit to eat, he 
come straight t’ me an’ boas’ ’bout it, al’ys men¬ 
tionin’ de spot he fin’ it. Consecordin’ly (as a 
consequence) Mista ’Coon’s provision market 
done become 01’ Brer ’Possum’s provision 
market. 

“Den, take Charlie Chat’rbox, de Squirrel. 
He de wors’ tattletale in de woods, o’ course, 
’ceptin’ Jim Crow—’fi fo’git to tell o’ Jim, 
by un by please remin’ me, fo’ he do be 
special.” 

“Why, I always thought the Squirrel was 
harmless,” said Teddy. 

“Shu he is! harmless an’ useful,” declared 
the ’Possum. “Charlie rise early an’ work de 
whole blessed day till sundown, findin’ out whar 


58 THE LITTLE BEAR WHO RAN AWAY 


grub mos’ abundant. More’n dat he know de 
feedin’ place o’ all de res’ o’ de woods-folks, an’ 
he not back’rd o’ cornin’ for’d t’ he’p heself, ’til 
he mos’ bust. Den he fill his cheeky face so full 
dat he can’t swaller. After’ds he ’bligingly come 
an’ brag ’bout whar he git de good things, an’ 
I listen. Consecordingly, he provision market 
done become Mr. ’Possum’s provision market, 
an’ all he fren’s’ an’ enemies’ provision markets 
done become de same ’Possum’s provision 
market.” 

“That may account for your being so fat,” 
said the Little Bear, “you have so many handy 
markets.” 

“Yes sah, Elmer! I is a trifle fat,” quickly 
answered the ’Possum, “an’ I have yo’ know Fs 
not ashame’ o’ it either.” 

“Now don’t get peeved,” said Teddy, “I only 
meant to compliment you. Go on and tell me 
about Jim Crow before you forget.” 

“Jes’ yo’ keep still chile! an’ don’ interrupt,” 


THE LITTLE BEAR WHO RAN AWAY 59 

said the ’Possum, “whiles I tell yo’ ’bout 01’ 
Jim Crow.” 

“Well, to do Jim justice, he not so black as 
he done be painted, but all de world knows Jim 
steal, an’ why shouldn’t he? For he so everlast- 
in’ hungry; he horned so, I spec, an’ he argify 
dat de big world done owe him a livin’. But on 
’count o’ poor management, he miss gittin’ it. 
He git only ’bout half o’ it. Jim’s curiosity keep 
him down, even if he do fly high, an’ he gene’ly 
tell more’n he knows, dat is when he’s awake. 
But he often talk truth in he sleep. An’ right 
dare, Mista Teddy, is whar I profits, for I listen; 
de soun’ o’ Jim’s loud dreamin’ carry down de 
tree lim’s into de holler tree whar I ’bide (where 
I live). I hear Jim tell de truth ’bout de market 
places o’ all de res’ o’ de woods critters. Conse- 
cordingly de big gen’l market o’ all de woods- 
folks done become de big gen’l market o’ Mista 
’Possum, fo’ which I be much ’bliged to 01’ Jim 
Crow, who am suttingly as queer as de seben 


60 THE LITTLE BEAR WHO RAN AWAY 


geese what done roos’ on de seben gables.” 

“Oh, I’m so hungry,” interrupted the Little 
Bear. 

“So’m I,” echoed the Old ’Possum. “Le’s 
hurry back, fo’ de 01’ President-King-Constable 
Bear mus’ also be mos’ famish’.” 



































































U 











XI 


One evening, after they had all eaten a hearty 
supper and Old Bear Peter had finished smoking 
his first pipe, Teddy thought it a good time to 
ask Mr. Bear if he could tell him where his 
Grandma lived. The old fellow made no reply 
at first, but ordered the ’Possum to bring the 
flint and dry punk and light another pipe for 
him. 

After the pipe was lit and the ’Possum had 
carried out the scraps left from supper and given 
them to Jim Crow, who had as usual been 
anxiously waiting for them, Peter puffed away 
for a minute, then turned to Teddy and said: 

“What was it, Sonny, you asked me while 
ago ? Oh, yes, I do remember, yo’ want to know 
where your Gran’mam lives. What might her 
name be?” 


61 


62 THE LITTLE BEAR WHO RAN AWAY 


The Little Bear shifted his position, and after 
clearing his throat said: 

6 ‘My Grandma, on her mother’s side was a—” 

Just then he was interrupted by Brother ’Pos¬ 
sum who hurriedly entered and said: 

66 ’Scuse me, sah! But Jim Crow he do say 
he done see a li’l black picaninny totin’ a water¬ 
melon ’cross de crick ’bout de size o’ a haystack.” 

The Old Constable of Bruintown dropped his 
pipe and nearly ran over Teddy in his hurry to 
capture that watermelon. 

“Come along, Teddy,” said he, “and you, 
’Pos, get a move on, and chase up to the forks 
and make sure the melon don’t escape in that 
direction, and we’ll grab the thief at the bend 
of the creek by the big sycamore tree if he comes 
that way.” 

Mr. ’Possum cut across in the direction his 
master had directed him to go. Jim Crow, too, 
joined in the chase, and left his half-finished 
supper of scraps and flew on ahead. Pretty soon 


THE LITTLE BEAR WHO RAN AWAY 63 

he spied the little picaninny again. He had 
stopped to rest before starting to climb the path 
that led up the hill to his home. Jim flew 
back and told Brother ’Possum where to look 
for the prize, and then excused himself as it was 
already late and he wanted to finish his supper 
before bedtime. 

Mr. ’Possum made his way through the thick 
undergrowth of dogwood and laurel bushes until 
he came to a pawpaw thicket which he passed 
through to the lower side; from there he could 
plainly see the little negro who sat resting. He 
had that pleased look on his black face that only 
the prospect of a watermelon feast can produce. 
“I sho’ly hates to disturb dat black chile,” 
thought the watchful ’Possum, “he look so glory- 
hale’uya’ happy.” 

But the little colored boy’s “glory-hallelujah” 
expression did not last long, for he picked up 
the huge melon and staggered off. He had gone 
but a short distance when he nearly humped into 


64 THE LITTLE BEAR WHO RAN AWAY 

the Old Bear and Teddy who stood right before 
him in the path. 

“Halt! Who comes there?” said Old Con¬ 
stable Peter. 

At the sight of the big and little bears the 
poor little negro’s face turned the color of dead 
ashes, his legs weakened, causing him to drop 
in his tracks, and the watermelon rolled down 
the path where Mr. ’Possum, who was hurriedly 
coming in that direction, tried to stop it. But it 
was by then going so fast that it passed right 
over the poor Old ’Possum. 

The shock was so great that he, too, dropped 
in his tracks and gave way to his usual ’possum 
faint. 

The little negro, however, quickly recovered, 
jumped to his feet and ran like a deer. 

The sight of Brother ’Possum being bowled 
over caused Teddy to have a case of giggle- 
laughs, while fat Old Peter shook with chuckles 
as he saw the little colored boy disappear in one 


THE LITTLE BEAR WHO RAN AWAY 65 


direction and the watermelon whirl off in the 
other and catch the eager ’Possum in its flight. 

“I haven’t had so much fun,” said he, as he 
slapped his knee, 4 ‘since the day an artist was 
brought into Bruintown.” 

After Teddy had tried in vain to rouse the 
’Possum, Old Peter picked him up by the tail 
and carried him to where the wrecked melon 
lay; then he dropped him. 

Both Teddy and the Old Bear lost no time in 
helping themselves to large chunks of the deli¬ 
cious melon. Pretty soon Brother ’Possum re¬ 
vived and pitched in without saying a word and 
ate his full share. They all ate until they were 
full. Then they walked around for a while and 
came back and ate what was left. 

When they started home, Teddy and the ’Pos¬ 
sum were so full that Old Peter had to carry 
them both all the way back up the steep hill to 
their cave, but all three were happy as stuffed 
toads. 














XII 


Both Teddy and Brother ’Possum felt very 
uneasy because of Old Bear Peter’s manner 
toward them for several days after the water¬ 
melon feast. 

They had nearly worn themselves out fetch¬ 
ing supplies for his every want, and still he was 
not happy but cross as a wolverine. 

“Pm afraid the old boy is homesick,” said 
Teddy, “and that he will take a notion one of 
these days to go back to Bruintown and try to 
take me with him.” (Notice Teddy said “try,” 
which shows—well it shows the Little Bear did 
not intend to go if he could possibly help it.) 

After Brother ’Possum had thought a minute, 
he said: 

“Have it done entered yo’ min’ dat de 01’ 
Bear am meat hungry?” 

$7 


68 THE LITTLE BEAR WHO RAN AWAY 


Teddy made no reply, but he did notice the 
pained look which came over the ‘Possum’s 
usual jolly face. 

“I done notice,” continued Mr. ’Possum, “dat 
de Constable look at me mighty cu’ious outen de 
corner o’ his eye an’ show his teeth. Yo’ know 
he did say what he gwine to do to me once.” 

“No! no! You must not think that,” said 
Teddy as he soothingly laid his paw on the dis¬ 
tressed ’Possum’s shoulder. “I know very well 
Old Peter would never think of such a thing. 
I’m sure he loves you.” 

“Well, I only hope he love me in he heart an’ 
not in he umbilicus” (stomach), sadly said the 
’Possum. 

“Maybe the reason Mr. Bear is so queer 
is because his tobacco is all gone and the old 
fellow has had nothing to smoke for the last 
three days but dried mullen leaves,” said Teddy. 

“Well, if dat’s de cause o’ he worry,” hastily 
said the ’Possum, “I c’n mighty soon fetch de 


THE LITTLE BEAR WHO RAN AWAY 69 


remedy.” And away he went as fast as his short 
legs could take him. 

In about forty-five minutes Mr. ’Possum 
returned, very much out of breath, carrying a 
small package. Teddy gave him a big drink of 
water and asked where he had been. But the 
’Possum only gave him a mysterious look, which 
meant that his business was of great importance, 
then he rushed into the cave where Old Peter 
sat smoking dried mullen leaves. The cave was 
so filled with ill-smelling smoke that it caused 
the ’Possum to cough and sneeze something 
dreadful. As soon as he was able to straighten 
up, and without saying a word, he handed the 
Old Bear a half-pound package of “Dilly’s Pow- 
hattan Delight” smoking tobacco. 

The effect was like magic, for a pleased smile 
overspread Mr. Bear’s face and his paws trem¬ 
bled so he could hardly load his pipe. Mr. ’Pos¬ 
sum obligingly helped him with flint and punk 
to get it going. 


70 THE LITTLE BEAR WHO RAN AWAY 

After a half-dozen puffs the Old Constable 
took his faithful servant on his knee, and after 
thanking him and giving him a real bear hug, 
not too hard, he said: 

“’Pos, you are a wonder! Now tell me 
where in ‘Sam Hill’ did you get it? Why, I 
thought there was none of this priceless brand 
of ’backy this side of Bruintown.” 

“Well, sah! Mr. President Constable, I done 
locate it in de Jack-Pot cabin what am on de sho’ 
o’ Black Duck Lake; whar de sport-nuts shoot 
ducks in de fall o’ de year. An’ I dunno whar 
dey obtain da terbacker any more’n dey know 
howcome yo’ am smokin’ it dis minute, 
sah!” 

Both Old Peter and Teddy were anxious to 
know more about the Jack-Pot cabin and begged 
Brother ’Possum to tell all about it. 

Mr. ’Possum felt very proud of being asked 
to speak and give important information, so he 
climbed on a rock ledge and faced his listeners. 


THE LITTLE BEAR WHO RAN AWAY 71 


He bowed very politely and after clearing his 
throat began: 

“Well, sah! Ladies an’ Gent’men—I mean 
kin’ frien’s—” 

“Au! Cut it out. We want to know about 
that cabin,” interrupted Teddy. 

“Yo’ min’ yo’ own business, Elmer, an’ don’ 
interrupt de speaker,” said the ’Possum with a 
scornful glance at the Little Bear, then con¬ 
tinued: 

“Dat Jack-Pot cabin done be habitated by 
sporty sport-nuts (sporting gentleman) in de 
fall when ducks am ripe, but not at de present 
time. No sah! It got up-to-date comoconven- 
iences (accommodations and conveniences). It 
am stored with nourishin’ wittles an’ terbacker. 
’Sides ’bout fo’ dozen large bottles o’ medicine 
wid de corks fasn’ wid wire, fo’ use in sickness 
an’ snake-bite.” 

Old Peter smacked his lips and said, “Proceed 
Mr. ’Possum.” 


72 THE LITTLE BEAR WHO RAN AWAY 

“I made my first ’ficial visit by way o’ de 
chimbly. I feels I can’t speak too highly o’ de 
’commodations inside, fo’ dey got dis here pres¬ 
ent habitation skin’d to de tail. 

“Now, Mr. President Constable, I move we 
move tonight an’ habitate dat ’sirable country 
club ’til ducks git ripe an’ de shootin’ com¬ 
mences, an’ dat we—well, we not stay fo’ de 
sport.” 

“I second the motion,” cried Teddy. 

“Carried!” said Old Peter. 

That night they moved to the Jack-Pot cabin 
after Old Brother ’Possum had gone down the 
chimney and opened the outside door. 























XIII 


Teddy and the Old Bear slept late the next 
morning after they had all moved into the Jack- 
Pot cabin, but Mr. ’Possum was up bright and 
early. The first thing he did was to climb up the 
chimney to have a look around. He wanted to 
see if everything was all right. But just as he 
stuck his head out of the chimney top he almost 
bumped into a red squirrel who tried to scuttle 
past him on his way down without even saying 
“Good morning.” 

The Old ’Possum grabbed Mr. Squirrel by the 
throat and had it out with him right then and 
there. The Squirrel tried to scratch and bite 
and talk back, but as he felt the grip of the 
’Possum’s tail around his waist with his front 
legs pinned close to his sides, he soon gave in 
and was obliged to listen. The Old ’Possum 

73 


74 THE LITTLE BEAR WHO RAN AWAY 

called him a sneak-thief and shook him until his 
teeth rattled. 

Nearly all the world knows that the red squir¬ 
rel is what Mr. ’Possum called him and that he 
is saucy and insolent, a tale bearer and the worst 
disturber of peace in all the big woods. The 
’Possum also knew of all his faults and did not 
hesitate to speak of them. “Besides,” said he, 
“yo’ are a notorious robber o’ birds’ nests an’ 
yo’ sucks eggs to boot.” Then he warningly 
said, “Looky here, Guy Fawks, yo’ mus’ stay 
’way from dese here premises fo’ I’se de new 
janitor, de butler, de housekeeper, de cook, an’ 
lan’lo’d. An’ yo’ privilege o’ visitin’ here am 
cancelled from dis mawnin henceonward.” 

Mr. ’Possum then went back down the chimney 
and opened the front door and swept the steps. 
And for almost an hour afterwards he busied 
himself about breakfast. Finally Teddy awoke 
and went about examining things and looking 
into boxes and stood on a chair so that he could 


THE LITTLE BEAR WHO RAN AWAY 75 


look on some shelves. Seeing so many things 
to eat made him hungry, so he asked how soon 
breakfast would be ready. “Jes’ as soon as yo’ 
ready fo’ it,” said the ’Possum. “Please wake 
up de President-Constable an’ brush yo’ teeth 
an’ comb yo’ hair befo’ yo’ come to de table.” 

Breakfast was ready by the time Old Peter 
had washed his face and brushed his hair smooth 
back of his ears. Teddy too had slicked himself 
up until the ’Possum hardly knew him; his hair 
was combed straight up, pompadour style. 

Mr. ’Possum had made coffee and opened a 
tin of condensed milk. He had also boiled some 
eggs which he had found in water glass. These, 
with bacon he had fried, some dried fruit and a 
plentiful supply of square crackers were all set 
ready for their first breakfast in the Jack-Pot 
cabin. The jolly Old ’Possum felt richly repaid 
for all the trouble he had taken, when he looked 
across the little round table at the beaming faces 
of the big and little bears. 


76 THE LITTLE BEAR WHO RAN AWAY 


Brother ’Possum politely showed the Old Con¬ 
stable how to manage his egg in an egg-cup, by 
cracking the top of it. Teddy watched how it 
was done and tried to manage his in like manner, 
but when he got his face and ears a good deal 
smeared, the ’Possum said nothing but soon 
fetched some paper napkins. 

The Old Bear had three helpings of every¬ 
thing on the table, while Teddy had two helpings 
of everything. But Mr. ’Possum ate sparingly. 
The others wondered why he did not eat more, 
but we must not forget that the ’Possum was 
up and around nearly an hour before the others 
were awake. And besides, has anyone ever heard 
of a good cook starving? 

After they had all finished eating Old Peter 
complimented and warmly praised his faithful 
servant for serving such an excellent breakfast. 
He said, “Now will you be so kind as to tell us 
where you learned to cook?” 

“By watching de cook what cooked fo’ de 


THE LITTLE BEAR WHO RAN AWAY 77 


sport-nuts dat oc’py dese premises las’ fall,” 
promptly answered the ’Possum, “fo’ I had 
’com’dations in de lof’ wid outside entrance an’ 
a knot hole convenient fo’ observation, an’ I 
tried to make de bes’ o’ m’ opportunities.” 

“What is it, Sonny?” said the Old Bear, who 
noticed that Teddy was trying to get a chance 
to say something. 

“Oh, do please! Won’t one of you tell me 
where my dear old Grandma lives?” 

“Looky here, Elmer,” hastily spoke the ’Pos¬ 
sum, “hain’t yo’ done satisfied wid dis boarding 
house? Do yo’ ca’c’late yo’ oF Grannysnapper 
know mo’ ’bout cookin’ dan I does? Fo’ two 
cents I’d tell yo’ jes’ whar to fin’ yo’ ol’ Gran—” 
Here Mr. ’Possum was interrupted by a knock 
at the door. 
























































































































































XIV 


The Old Bear sent Teddy to answer the 
knock, while he himself took the precaution to 
step into a closet and close the door; Mr. ’Pos¬ 
sum hurriedly passed through the open fireplace 
and half way up the chimney. 

Teddy cautiously opened the door about two 
inches without loosening the chain and peeped 
out. He was pleasantly greeted by Mr. Fox. 

66 ’Lo, Elmer! How-dy-do! How’s the rest of 
the folks?” And without waiting for an answer 
he pushed his paw through the crack of the door 
for a shake. The Little Bear grasped and held it 
while he called for Old Peter. The Old Bear 
came from his retreat in the closet and took the 
extended paw and held it while Teddy loosened 
the chain and opened the door. 

“Is there anything I can do for you?” said the 

79 


80 THE LITTLE BEAR WHO RAN AWAY 

Bear after the Fox was hauled inside and the 
door closed. 

Now the Fox was fighting mad at the rude 
treatment he had received, but he was either 
afraid, too much of a gentleman, or too foxy to 
show it, so he said, ‘Tm only making a neigh¬ 
borly call, Mr. Bear, and I want to wish you the 
very best of luck in your new home.” 

Old Peter smiled and nodded politely while 
he waited for the Fox to say more. “I noticed 
you moving in here last night,” he continued, 
“as I was returning from a call on a sick 
friend.” 

“Did yo’ save de feders?” interjected the 
’Possum, who had by that time slid back down 
the chimney and joined the company. 

“Um! Well—I— By the way, speaking of 
feathers, that reminds me; would you people 
like to have a nice featherbed? I have an extra 
one, very fine, mostly goose feathers which I 
would like to exchange for something use—” 


THE LITTLE BEAR WHO RAN AWAY 81 

Just then he was interrupted by a knock at the 
door. 

The Old Bear quickly pulled the Fox into the 
closet with him, and the ’Possum sought safety 
again in the chimney, while Teddy went to see 
who it was at the door. 

66 Well, by heck! I’ll be skinned!” ejaculated 
Old Grinnie, the ’Coon, when the Little Bear 
opened the door, “if ’tain’t my ol’ friend Elmer! 
And I’m Jack-whoopin’ glad to see you,” and 
gave the Little Bear a double paw shake. 

Then Old Mr. ’Possum, who had overheard 
enough to reassure him that all was right, came 
scrambling down the chimney to welcome his 
old friend. 

“Well! well! well! Grinnie, old pal, ’fi ain’t 
Jack-whoopin’ glad yo’ looked in on dis peaceful 
fambly.” 

Just then the Old Constable and Mr. Fox 
stepped out of the closet. At the sight of the 
Old Bear, the frightened ’Coon bolted for the 


82 THE LITTLE BEAR WHO RAN AWAY 


door, but Teddy barred the way and laying a 
reassuring paw on his old friend’s shoulder, said: 

“Wait a minute, Brother ’Coon, I want to 
make you acquainted with Mr. Peter, the Con¬ 
stable of Bruintown.” The Old Bear greeted the 
Coon politely and heartily shook his timid paw. 

“Oh! I say, Teddy, don’ yo’ be goin’ to give 
OF Grinnie a knock-down to de feder dealer?” 
cried Mr. ’Possum. 

“I beg pardon,” said the Little Bear. “Coony, 
meet Fox.” The Fox bowed very stiffly while 
Mr. ’Coon only stared, but neither had a word to 
say to each other. Mr. Bear could not help notic¬ 
ing the coolness between these neighbors, so he 
asked them all to be seated and passed his 
tobacco pouch to Mr. ’Coon and said, “Let’s 
smoke. Try this special brand and pass it to Mr. 
Fox. When your pipes are all going, I want to 
say a few words for the good of us all.” 

After their pipes were filled and Mr. ’Possum 
had politely helped all with flint and punk to a 


THE LITTLE BEAR WHO RAN AWAY 83 


light, he then filled his own old short-stemmed 
clay pipe with black perique tobacco from his 
own pouch. He had just struck a spark and was 
blowing on the punk to get his own light, when 
they were all startled by loud knocking at the 
door. 

The Old Bear again quickly slid into the 
closet, taking the Fox with him, and Brother 
’Possum again sought protection up the chim¬ 
ney, taking his old pal, Grinnie ’Coon along with 
him, while Teddy—Didn’t it seem cowardly for 
them all to hide and leave the poor Little Orphan 
Bear to always face the danger?—Well, anyhow, 
Teddy very cautiously opened the door only 
about an inch. Then he slammed it shut again 
and braced himself against it. 






















XV 


Teddy called loudly for help and braced him¬ 
self more firmly against the door, but not even 
the Old Bear at first came to his rescue. The 
knocking continued louder than ever. 

Then came fierce howls and angry threats 
from a Wolf. This brought Mr. Bear promptly 
from his closet. He at once took his place against 
the door and whispered to the Little Bear to 
summon both Brother ’Possum and the ’Coon. 
“Then open that closet door,” said he, “and tell 
Fox that he too is urgently wanted.” 

When Teddy went to the fireplace he found 
Mr. ’Possum prostrate on the hearth. The shock 
of hearing the Wolf’s howls had upset his nerves, 
causing him to faint and tumble back down the 
chimney. When Teddy tried to summon the 
’Coon, he found he had climbed nearly to the 

85 


86 THE LITTLE BEAR WHO RAN AWAY 


top of the chimney. But after much persuasion 
he came down and in a broken voice asked the 
Old Constable if there was anything he could do 
for him. When the howls and loud knocking 
outside had ceased for a second or two, so that 
Peter could make himself heard, he told the 
’Coon to bring his pipe and tobacco. “I’ll bet 
my hide against a bear rug,” thought the ’Coon 
as he went to do as he was bid, “that the poor 
old fellow has been frightened out of his wits.” 

The Wolf outside had evidently been joined 
by his mate, for the yelping of two voices could 
then be heard. All the hubbub only caused Old 
Peter to smile, for he had a plan of his own of 
teaching a lesson to these daring highway-wolf- 
men. 

Mr. Bear’s smile seemed to convince both 
'Teddy and the ’Coon that all was not lost, for 
they went and really succeeded in waking Old 
Brother ’Possum up, but they had to drag him 
across the room by the tail before he showed 


THE LITTLE BEAR WHO RAN AWAY 87 


signs of life. After he was finally awake, he 
roundly scolded Teddy for pulling his tail and 
called his old pal, the ’Coon, a “slime-digging 
crawfish.” Then he asked the Constable if there 
was anything he could do in the cause of peace. 

“Yes!” said the Bear in a whisper. “Please 
light my pipe for me. Then go and help Teddy 
and Brother ’Coon yank that Foxy coward out 
of the closet.” 

When they all three bumped against the 
closet door at once, the fastenings gave way and 
the terrified Fox was pulled out by the ears and 
hauled before Mr. Bear, who explained to them 
all in low tones between suppressed chuckles 
and puffs of smoke his plan of action. 

“The wolves think,” he said, “that they only 
have the weaker creatures to deal with. They 
have no idea that they are going to meet a full- 
grown bear. This is really going to be a surprise 
party for Mr. Wolf and his lady. 

“Now, ’Pos, I want you to he spokesman and 


88 THE LITTLE BEAR WHO RAN AWAY 


carry on a parley. Do yon think your nerves are 
strong enough, and can I depend upon you?” 

“Yo’ bet yo’ can, Mr. President-Constable,” 
boasted the ’Possum. “I’s a regular dare-debil 
after one o’ m’ sinkin’ spells. If yo’ only let me 
at ’im, I’d mighty soon make hamburger steak 
outen bof dem wolves an’-” 

“All right,” interrupted Peter, “I’ll trust you. 
Now when Teddy opens the door about two 
inches, without loosening the chain, you must 
say something to them. Then they will push 
their dirty paws in like that smart Alex Fox did, 
and I’ll grab both wolves and yank them inside. 
After that we will square accounts with Mr. Wolf 
and his missus.” 

All of Mr. Bear’s plans for the capture of the 
wolves were carried out to the letter, for they 
found themselves helplessly stretched out on 
their backs before they hardly knew what was 
happening. Old Peter was standing with a foot 
on the neck of each. The ’Coon was holding the 



THE LITTLE BEAR WHO RAN AWAY 89 


tail of one wolf while the Fox firmly gripped the 
tail of the other. 

“Now, ’Pos, you bring the clothesline and I 
will muzzle these rascals, and you and Teddy 
may fasten a tin can to each of their tails, and 
be sure you fasten them good and tight. You 
may also put a pawful of gravel in each of the 
tins so that the outlaws will have music to 
accompany them as they travel from here to 
foreign parts.” 

When all was ready, the muzzled wolves with 
their rattling tails were turned out of the Jack- 
Pot cabin. 

The rattle of the tin cans was faintly heard in 
the distance as the Old Bear, the ’Coon, the Fox 
and the ’Possum were relighting their pipes and 
Teddy sat contentedly eating from a box of 
chocolates. 
























o]o in — but n°t by vJoy 
o j the chimney— 2*ncl s*noke / 

occ^iion^I pfps With your old friend 











XVI 


There was a peaceful quiet in the Jack-Pot 
cabin after the hasty departure of the outlaw 
wolves. Only chuckles of amusement could be 
heard coming from the Old Bear, the ’Coon and 
the Fox as clouds of smoke rose from their pipes. 

Brother ’Possum had finished his smoke of 
strong tobacco and, after he had carefully put 
his short clay pipe away, he joined the Little 
Bear who generously passed the box of choco¬ 
lates and said, “Do help yourself, Brother.” 

The Old ’Possum did help himself, and while 
Teddy went to prop the door open to allow the 
dense smoke to escape, he filled both trouser 
pockets. When the Little Bear returned there 
were only a half dozen chocolates left; instead of 
paying any attention to the piggish ’Possum, 
Teddy decided it was a good time and a good 

91 


92 THE LITTLE BEAR WHO RAN AWAY 

chance to ask a question he had had in his mind 
all through the excitement of the last three- 
quarters of an hour. So he coughed to attract 
attention, then said, “Surely, some of you must 
know where my Old Grandma lives; if you do, 
won’t you please tell me? I would—” 

Here he was interrupted by the ’Possum 
throwing the empty chocolate box into the fire¬ 
place. And when the ’Coon made a grab for it 
to see if there were any chocolates left, the sneak¬ 
ing Fox tried to pick the ’Possum’s pocket. But 
he was not quick enough, for the wiry tail 
gripped his paw and held it until Old Peter 
came and caught the Fox by the ear and led him 
back to his seat. Then he called them all to 
order and said, “Now I want to have a little talk 
with you all,” and turning to the guilty Fox, 
said, “You, sir, are only a guest here. The door 
is now open and as soon as I have finished talk¬ 
ing you are going out and your visit is at an end. 
Hereafter the only communication you will have 


THE LITTLE BEAR WHO RAN AWAY 93 


with this establishment will be confined strictly 
to the business of barter and trade and there will 
be mighty little of that.” 

The Fox hung his head and said nothing. He 
did not even look foxy now, he only looked 
sheepish. 

Then turning to the ’Coon, Mr. Bear said, 
“You, my dear sir, are, I understand, an old pal 
of Brother ’Possum, my faithful servant, and 
both he and this orphan Bear are indebted to 
you for some past favor—er—I think it had to 
do with honey and leaves, did it not?” 

“It mos’ suttinly did,” spoke the ’Possum, 
“an’ chickens, an’—” Then he clapped his paw 
over his mouth to keep himself from telling too 
much. 

“Well, anyhow,” continued Peter, “you may 
drop in—but not by way of the chimney— 
and smoke an occasional pipe with your old 
friend. Meanwhile if you have anything to bar¬ 
ter or trade, we are always open to business. 


94 THE LITTLE BEAR WHO RAN AWAY 

“It occurs to me just now that we must have 
a night watchman; I will appoint you to that 
position, and if you are willing, you may serve 
us in that capacity.” 

Old Grinnie, the ’Coon, was so overcome by 
these flattering remarks that he could not speak, 
and he only politely bowed his thanks. Then the 
’Possum passed him three chocolates and went 
to the door to have a word with Old Jim Crow 
who had just called. 

“Do ask him to step inside,” said the Con¬ 
stable, “for I want to speak to him.” When 
Jimmie came in he croaked, “Good morning!” 
and flew on the table and began helping himself 
to the scraps left from breakfast, but all the 
while kept an eye on the Fox. 

The Old Bear told Jim that he had just 
engaged a night watchman for the Jack-Pot 
cabin, but they wanted a day watchman also, 
and that he thought he was just the man—or 
bird for the job. The details of the arrangement 


THE LITTLE BEAR WHO RAN AWAY 95 


he said he was going to leave to his faithful serv¬ 
ant, and advised them to talk the matter over 
right away. 

Old Brother ’Possum then stepped up to the 
Crow, who still had his eye on the Fox, and was 
just finishing the last of the scraps, saluted him 
and said, “Shun!! Looky here, Jim, while yo’ 
am welcome to de leavin’s from de rich folks’ 
table, hereafter yo’ gwine to ’ceive dem on de 
outside, an’ yo’ not to be ’lowed to come in an’ 
track up de table.” 

“Caw! caw! caw!” answered the Crow. 

The ’Possum understood this to mean “Sure, 
Mike! Anything you say.” 

“If yo’ done agree to take de job an’ keep a 
bird’s eye look down on dese premises, de lef’ 
over scraps gwine to belong to yo’.” 

“Caw! caw! caw! caw!” came the answer, 
which the ’Possum understood to mean, “You 
fathead! I’d do that anyway and steal the scraps 
to boot.” 


96 THE LITTLE BEAR WHO RAN AWAY 


‘‘There will be a chance,” the ’Possum went 
on to say, “fo’ yo’ to earn a li’l extra, if yo’ keep 
yo’ eye skinned for a bee-tree an’ repo’t de 
same.” 

“Caw! caw! Haw! haw! haw!” This meant, 
“Right-o! While you and your gang rob the 
bee-tree. I’ll loot your Jack-Pot joint.” Mr. 
’Possum did not really know what it meant. 
But he reported that he had made satisfactorv 
arrangements with Jim Crow, who was delighted 
to earn an honest living. 

The meeting then broke up and Mr. Fox 
sneaked off. but Jim Crow still kept an eye on 
him. 




















XVII 


For days and weeks after that first eventful 
day in the Jack-Pot cabin, the domestic affairs 
of its strange occupants went without serious 
trouble. 

But as we said before, Old Bear Peter, the Con¬ 
stable, was notoriously lazy; still, as he was the 
head of the family, both Teddy and Brother 
’Possum obeyed all his commands. Jim Crow 
came regularly for his scraps and neighborhood 
gossip, and Old Grinnie, the ’Coon, was not far 
behind in his devotion to the Jack-Pot. He 
exchanged an occasional pair of spring chickens 
—the early crop of broilers were then just get¬ 
ting ripe and were quite plentiful—for a bit of 
smoked bacon and a paper bag full of dog bis¬ 
cuits. 

One morning, when the ’Coon’s back was 

97 


98 THE LITTLE BEAR WHO RAN AWAY 


turned, and he was having a whispered talk with 
the ’Possum about whether Teddy would ever 
find his Grandmother, Jim Crow stole three dog 
biscuits and was just returning for the fourth 
when he was discovered. It looked for a minute 
as though there was going to be trouble. 

“By the five black rings on my tail! Jo ’Pos” 
—the ’Coon always called his old pal “Jo”— 
“if I don’t, one of these mornings, wring that 
thieving Crow’s neck.” 

After the ’Possum had made good Brother 
’Coon’s losses, he said, “Yo’ll make de mistake 
o’ yo’ life, if yo’ does, Grinnie. Fo’ 01’ Jim done 
be a good-luck bird, even if he do steal ev’ything 
what not nailed fas’. Besides de Constable am 
sho’ly becomin’ attached to de black rascal.” 

“Caw! caw! Hoop-a-law! Haw! haw!” 
screamed the Crow from an overhead limb. This 
meant, “Cut the cackle, both of you bottle-nosed 
tadpole eaters.” Then he threw a dog biscuit, 
which struck the Old ’Coon square between the 


THE LITTLE BEAR WHO RAN AWAY 99 


eyes. The ’Coon was so angry his old pal had 
to hold him. He wanted to climb the tree to get 
at the Crow. 

Only a few mornings after the Crow-’Coon 
affair, while Teddy was busily sweeping the 
cabin doorsteps, who should show up but old 
Mr. Fox. He wanted to trade a tough old rooster 
for a strip of bacon, three pounds of peanut 
brittle and a tin of biscuits. But Old Peter over¬ 
heard, through his open bedroom window, the 
Fox’s unfair attempt at barter, and gave such a 
loud fierce growl, that the Fox ran off as fast 
as his legs could take him, and left the tough 
old bird behind. Later, the same day, Mr. ’Pos¬ 
sum gave it to an old Badger, who rather reluct¬ 
antly carried it off. 

It might have been that the Old Bear was 
living too high, for he was growing fatter and 
fatter every day. One morning he awoke late 
and complained of a headache. Brother ’Possum 
looked troubled. 


100 THE LITTLE BEAR WHO RAN AWAY 

“It’s prob’ly overfeeding,” he thought to him¬ 
self; then another thought occurred to him. “He 
only had chicken meat lately. I do hopes he not 
want a change o’ diet, something wid mo’ fat.” 
Then he happened to think of the four dozen 
large bottles of medicine in the closet. He 
brought a bottle and opened it. The old patient 
took only a tablespoonful at first. 

“Good stuff, ’Pos!” he said. “Why I feel 
better already. I’m going to cure myself all at 
once. This medicine might spoil if it is left to 
stand, so here goes the balance of it now.” 

The old fellow did look a lot brighter as he 
handed the empty bottle to Teddy, who smelled 
the cork and passed the bottle on to Brother 
’Possum. He tasted a few drops that were left 
and then winked at the Little Bear, who followed 
him outside. 

“Oh!—I—I—say! El— Teddy, do yo’ rec’- 
lect if de President-Constable ’casion’ly felt 
poo’ly while he done sojourn in Bruintown?” 


THE LITTLE BEAR WHO RAN AWAY 101 


Teddy’s face was a puzzle. He had never been 
a talebearer and he did not want to become one 
now. So he said, “I—I—think Mr. Peter is 
cured enough with one bottle, don’t you think 
so yourself, Brother?” 

“Yes sah! I sho’ly does, an’ de few drops 
what I get o’ de leavin’s done convince me dat 
I might be taken poo’ly soon myself an’ need to 
be cu’ed by de same remedy. An’ if dat be de 
case, I might neglec’ m’ duties in de Jack-Pot 
cabin. 

“Now den, Mista Teddy! de case stan’ ’bout 
dis-a-way. De patient am cu’ed by de one bottle 
he done took, an’ / shows sim’tums o’ needin’ 
de same kin’ o’ medicine after de few drops I 
taste! An’ yo’ yo’self—lemme see yo’ tongue! 
Yes, Um hum! Well yo’ on’y need exercise. I 
s’posen yo’ already un’stand I’s de butler o’ de 
Jack-Pot an’ done carry de key to de closet whar 
de medicine live. Now seein’ we’s all in tol’able 
good health, an’ de medicine am lock’d up, I’s 


102 THE LITTLE BEAR WHO RAN AWAY 

a min’ to cas’ dis here key to de fishes in de lake. 
But I don’ min’ tellin’ yo’, Teddy, it nearly 
break m’ ol’ heart to part with it.” 

Then the ’Possum made a motion of throwing 
it, but the Little Bear, who chanced to notice it 
still in Mr. ’Possum’s paw, said, “Why don’t you 
throw it?” “ ’Scuse me! I sho’ done fo’got to 
let go o’ it.” Then he really did throw it, and 
Teddy saw where the key struck the water and 
he was very glad of it. 










I 









* 













t 



































































XVIII 


Days and weeks sped past and the time drew 
near when the duck season would begin. Teddy, 
the Old Bear and Brother ’Possum all knew that 
they must soon clear out of the Jack-Pot cabin. 

Two questions were disturbing Teddy’s mind; 
one was—and he asked himself this question 
often—“How soon would the Old Constable 
attempt to take him back to Bruintown?” 

The other question was, “Have I even a ghost 
of a chance of ever finding my Grandma?” 

Neither of these important matters appeared 
to concern Old Peter or the ’Possum in the least, 
for, if Brother ’Possum ever gave a thought 
about having to move, he told himself that up to 
the present time he had always managed to get 
along pretty well, and that it would be time to 
worry when the time to worry came. Besides, 

103 


104 THE LITTLE BEAR WHO RAN AWAY 

and he winked at himself as he thought of it, for 
he knew some things might happen soon. 

And as for the Old Bear worrying, just to look 
at him was enough. He was too fat to bother his 
head. His stomach was all he cared for. 6 ‘Great 
Scott!” thought he, “haven’t I a right to a little 
rest from eternally trying to keep the Bruintown 
scallywags in order? Anyhow, that incompa¬ 
rable ’Possum—the best servant a bear was ever 
blessed with—will manage things some way or 
other when the time comes to clear out of the 
Jack-Pot. 

“As for that little tike, Teddy, I’ve grown 
very fond of him, and if I’d had him all the time, 
I’d made a real bear out of—” 

Here his thoughts were interrupted by the 
entrance of his faithful servant who saluted and 
said: 

“If it please yo’ honox, Mista President-Con¬ 
stable, bof de day watchman an’ de night watch 
am ’sembled in de front yard lookin’ as do dey 


THE LITTLE BEAR WHO RAN AWAY 105 


gwine to bus’ wid important news corked up 
inside da skins—da min’s I mean.” 

“Sho’ ’m in,” commanded Mr. Bear. 

The ’Coon and Old Jim Crow both spoke at 
once: 

“I’ve found a bee-tree,” said Mr. ’Coon. 

“Caw-waw-haw!” said Jim, meaning “I have 
found a bee-tree.” 

“Lead the way,” cried the Old Bear, as he fol¬ 
lowed Mr. ’Coon out of the front door. The 
Crow wanted to stay behind and keep cabin, but 
the ’Possum gave him one look and pointed to 
the open door. Jim took the hint and waited 
outside while Teddy and the ’Possum got a 
couple of pails, closed and bolted all the win¬ 
dows and locked the door. Then the Crow led 
them to the same old bee-tree that they both 
had known so well in the past. Old Grinnie and 
the Bear were there ahead of them, but both 
hesitated about tackling the ticklish or stinging 
job. 


106 THE LITTLE BEAR WHO RAN AWAY 


Brother ’Possum and Teddy showed them the 
trick of daubing their noses. When all were 
ready, Mr. ’Possum and the ’Coon climbed up 
and began passing down the well-filled honey¬ 
combs. The Old Bear caught them and, when 
one pail was filled, sent Teddy to carry it off for 
a distance, and when he went back to help with 
the other pail, Jim Crow tried to steal a honey¬ 
comb ; but the old bird got himself badly messed 
up with honey and the bees followed and tackled 
him with a vengeance. Jim soon beat a retreat 
with most of the swarm of bees in pursuit. 

When both pails were full, the robbers all ate 
a lot themselves, and still there was oodles of 
honey left, so they ate that to save it. 

The journey back to the Jack-Pot was very 
slow. The ’Possum, the ’Coon and the Little 
Bear were all three so filled with sweetness 
that they could hardly walk, and the fat Old 
Bear had not only his own inside load to carry, 
but he had to carry both pails. “I’s mighty sorry, 


THE LITTLE BEAR WHO RAN AWAY 107 

Boss,” said Mr. ’Possum once, when they all 
rested, “dat I can’t he’p carry de pails.” 

“So’m I,” said the Little Bear. 

Then a bright idea occurred to Mr. ’Coon and 
he said, “Now if El— I mean Teddy an’ OF Jo 
’Pos will help me to eat some out of the biggest 
pail, it might make the load balance better.” 
Then he looked at his old pal and Teddy, who 
both nodded, “Yes.” So the three ate again 
while Old Peter rested and smoked his pipe. 

That night both Brother ’Possum and Teddy 
had the tummy-ache. Mr. ’Coon waddled off to 
attend to his duties, but he only went a short 
distance and fell asleep on the ground under the 
tree where Jim Crow roosted. Poor Jim nursed 
a sore head and talked in his restless sleep that 
night. 

But the Old Constable of Bruintown slept like 
a brick in the Jack-Pot cabin. 




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XIX 


One evening at the close of an uneventful 
day, after both Teddy and the Old Bear had 
gone to bed, Brother ’Possum sat smoking on 
the door-step. He often smoked a good-night 
pipe of his extra strong mixture before climbing 
to his attic room “with outside accommodations.” 

Just as he was knocking the ashes from his 
pipe the night watchman came up the path lead¬ 
ing from the lake. “’Lo, Jo ’Pos!” said Mr. 
’Coon. “’Lo, Grinnie, ol’ pal!” responded the 
’Possum, “yo’s jes’ de man I done had skippin’ 
’roun’ in my min’. Light that ol’ corncob pipe. 
Here, try dis mixture an’ see how real ’baccy 
tastes once. Yes, sah! It am a trifle strong, but 
ol’ codgers like us git usen to it.” 

They smoked in silence for a while. Thoughts 
of the coming changes at the Jack-Pot occupied 

109 


110 THE LITTLE BEAR WHO RAN AWAY 

both their minds. Pretty soon Mr. ’Possum be¬ 
gan a whispered conversation, punctuated with 
an occasional gesture. The ’Coon nodded, “Yes, 
yes,” a few times, then laid his paw on his old 
friend’s shoulder and said: 

“Why, that seems to agree with what Old 
Jim’s telling every one he meets and screaming 
it from the tree-tops besides, but everybody 
knows what a—oh, well, you know Jim as well 
as I do.” 

Brother ’Possum thought for a minute, then 
said: 

“For two cents, Grinnie, I’d take de night off, 
an’ ’f yo’ll jine me, we might look in on some 
o’ de oF neighbors. Will you go?” 

Old Mr. ’Coon readily consented and they 
both shuffled off through the big dark woods. 
They talked of Old Peter’s long absence from 
his official Bruintown duties and of Teddy’s low 
spirits as the time drew near when the Jack-Pot 
cabin must be vacated. 


THE LITTLE BEAR WHO RAN AWAY 111 


By and by they came to Old Miss Hoo hoo’s 
dead tree. 

66 ’Lo, sis! Is yo’ at home?” cried Mr. ’Pos¬ 
sum. 

No answer. 

66 ’Sposen yo’ call, Grinnie.” 

“Bally wally hoo hooo! Wake up, ol’ gal. A 
pair o’ Jack-whoopin’ ol’ sports come a-visitin’.” 

No answer. 

While they rested and waited for Miss Owl’s 
return, Brother ’Possum unfolded a plan to his 
old friend for a surprise party blow-out to take 
place the night before leaving the Jack-Pot 
cabin. The ’Coon’s little eyes sparkled with 
delight as he listened. He agreed to nearly all 
the ’Possum’s suggestions, and was debating a 
minor point when Miss Owl returned. 

After the usual greetings were gone through 
with, and casual mention of duck hunting from 
her point of view, Miss Hoo hoo—whose word 
could always be trusted—confirmed the neigh- 


112 THE LITTLE BEAR WHO RAN AWAY 


borhood gossip concerning the affairs of both 
Old Peter and Teddy. She said everyone spoke 
well of the Little Bear, but she was sorry she 
could not say as much for the Old Constable of 
Bruin town. Still that might be because he had 
made enemies as guardian of the peace in the 
north woods. However, the Old Owl readily 
agreed to be one of the surprise party. 

The ’Coon and the ’Possum then hurried 
along to visit the Muskrat family. They had not 
heard the woods gossip, or if they had, they pre¬ 
ferred not to repeat it. Both Mike and Molly 
Muskrat were delighted to be included in the 
select surprise party and begged to be allowed 
to bring the junior Muskrats, promising they 
would surely be on their best behavior. 

Next the ’Possum and ’Coon called on Mr. 
Fox. He looked, if possible, foxier than ever, 
and was doubly delighted to see them. Needless 
to say the old boy accepted the party invitation 
and generously offered to bring something him- 


THE LITTLE BEAR WHO RAN AWAY 113 


self. He was firmly told “No,” and at the same 
time put on his honor not to carry off anything 
that didn’t belong to him. 

The ’Possum and his pal then went out of 
their way to call on a family of Rabbits. They 
were eager to be included in the party, but not 
inside the skins of some of the other guests. In 
fact they asked for, and were given, a safe con¬ 
duct both coming and going. 

Jim Crow was just starting on his early morn¬ 
ing rounds when he met the ’Possum and the 
’Coon on their return. Jim readily entered into 
the party plans and volunteered some startling 
information that both Grinnie and Brother ’Pos¬ 
sum hoped might prove true. 

Teddy had risen and was sweeping the Jack- 
Pot steps when the tired night prowlers returned. 
The Little Bear wondered why Brother ’Possum 
looked at him so queerly as he busied himself 
preparing breakfast. 


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XX 


The season for shooting was to open at Black 
Duck Lake on the fifteenth of the month. Teddy 
was so depressed by the twelfth that Old Brother 
’Possum had all he could do to keep his own 
courage up to his usual standard. If it had not 
been for the secret locked within his furry breast 
he, too, might have felt blue. 

The Little Bear asked his old friend, as he set 
down a pail of water from the spring, whether 
Mr. Peter had said anything lately about return¬ 
ing to Bruintown. 

“No, chil’, he sholy done not mention it.” 

“Well, anyhow,” said Teddy, “I’d much 
rather take my chances alone in the big woods 
as I did when I had the good fortune of meeting 
you. Please! Please! dear Brother ’Possum, 
can’t you find out from some of the woods people 

115 


116 THE LITTLE BEAR WHO RAN AWAY 

where my Grandma does live? She would be so 
glad to see me, and you, too, I’m sure, if we 
could only find her. We would both be a com¬ 
fort to her, for she never has been happy since 
my Old Grandaddy Dan was captured and put 
into a big ugly circus. Oh, ’Pos! I’m going to 
cry if I don’t stop talking about it.” 

Old Brother ’Possum laid one paw on the 
Little Bear’s shoulder and gave him an affection¬ 
ate pat on the back with the other and said: 

“There, there, Sonny, cheer up. Yo’ knows 
I’d be pow’ful pleased to visit yo’ OF Granny- 
snapper, and I feels in my brittle bones yo’ cryin’ 
soon gwine to be turned to laughin’. Anyhow, 
yo’ better pitch in and he’p wid some work I got 
laid out to—why, if here don’ come OF Grinnie! 
He gwine to lose he job o’ watchin’ de Jack-Pot, 
but he suttinly done look chipper ’nough now.” 

After Mr. ’Coon had deposited a good-sized 
bundle of something in the kitchen, the ’Possum 
said; 


THE LITTLE BEAR WHO RAN AWAY 117 


“Come ’long, Grinnie, le’s all hoi’ confab 
(conversation) wid de Boss-President-Constable, 
fo’ he done show signs de firs’ time dis mawnin o’ 
havin’ a case of de slumpy slumps.” 

After a few minutes’ talk, the Old Bear came 
out with the rest, looking a little more cheerful. 
They had decided to move soon and give the 
sport-nuts plenty of time to restock the Jack- 
Pot, if they found it a little short of provisions 
and some other things. 

“We all done grow so fon’ o’ de place,” said 
Mr. ’Possum, “dat I propose we selec’ a few 
tokens les’ we fo’git de good time we had. De 
sporty-nuts can fin’ more in de market whar 
dese come from.” 

As no one offered objection, the ’Possum and 
the ’Coon made selections and they all marched 
off with heavy loads. They wended their way 
back to the cave where they had last lived. All 
worked with a will and were very tired that night 
after they had made three trips. 


118 THE LITTLE BEAR WHO RAN AWAY 

“Ps al’ys hearn tell,” said Brother ’Possum, 
“dat Friday am an unlucky day to leave, so le’s 
spend dis las’ night in de ol’ Jack-Pot. Now 
whiles yo’, Mista Boss Peter, an’ Teddy res’ 
yo’selves an’ take a short nap, Grinnie ’ll he’p 
me scrape up a li’l snack o’ eats, an’ we call yo’ 
when it ready.” 

For more than an hour Mr. ’Possum and Mr. 
’Coon worked like beavers at preparing a feast. 
The ’Coon opened several tins of sardines and 
salmon, yes, and baked beans and ox-tongue, to 
say nothing of other delicacies. Then there were 
the chickens he had brought in the package. 
These Mr. ’Possum fricasseed, fried and roasted 
and made oodles of gravy. All the invited guests’ 
tastes were considered. 

When the big table, the kitchen table and 
even the card table were all nicely laid, the 
guests began to arrive, and during the good- 
natured confusion of finding their places, Mr. 
’Coon departed on some special business. When 


THE LITTLE BEAR WHO RAN AWAY 119 


all were seated and quiet restored, Brother ’Pos¬ 
sum woke up the Old Bear and Teddy and led 
them in where the guests were all expectantly 
waiting. 

Both Old Peter and the Little Bear were 
speechless with surprise. The happy company 
cheered and shouted with delight, and two of 
the junior Muskrats climbed on the table in their 
excitement. 

The Old Bear took one of the empty seats at 
the head of the big table and Teddy was seated 
at his left. Everyone looked at the empty seat 
on his right and wondered who was to occupy it. 

Brother ’Possum took a seat at the end of the 
kitchen table, the seat beside him being reserved 
for Brother ’Coon. The Old ’Possum stood on 
his chair and cleared his throat as though he 
were going to say something. Just then they 
heard the click of the front door latch, and all 
quickly turned to see the smiling ’Coon enter, 
leading a pleasant-faced old She-Bear. It was 


120 THE LITTLE BEAR WHO RAN AWAY 

indeed Old Lucy, Teddy’s Grandma. The Little 
Bear leaped into her outstretched arms and was 
held in a tight embrace. When she chanced to 
catch the eye of the Old Bear, who had risen and 
was staring in bewilderment, they both seemed 
to recognize each other at the same instant, for 
as she fell into his big strong arms, she cried, 
“Dan!” 

The Old Bear answered with a glad new ring 
in his voice, “Lucinda!” 

The Little Orphan Bear had not only found 
his Grandma, but he had also found his Gran¬ 
dad. 


THE END 









































































































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